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I recently wrote about a new DD+ brand Rochella which is a British middle-market brand with a good cause and a unique, more mature yet quirky aesthetics. I remember back in the day Miss Underpinnings used to talk about the lack of full-bust brands catering for the 30-something customer and I personally feel Rochella is the answer to that plea. The designs are suitable for any age but I think they do have more grown-up styles than eg Cleo and Curvy Kate, yet the styles are not “old” but a bit whimsical to maintain a fresh look. When interviewing the founder of the brand, Karen, she asked if I wanted to review one of her sets and of course I said yes! Today I am bringing you one of the first (if not the very first?) Rochella blog reviews out there, with their beautiful “Tattoo Butterfly” set.

The Design: I was instantly drawn to the Tattoo Butterfly set as it was something rather unique to me: I had never had a bra with butterflies on it and even though the idea sounded a bit juvenile to me, there is nothing too young and cute about this bra. The design is, in one word, STUNNING. I have actually always loved butterflies, I hate bugs in general, but I find butterflies to be the miracles of nature and each time I see one, it makes me so happy. Even though butterflies are usually depicted as super colourful with the shades of orange and yellow, I really enjoyed the teal and black combination of the set which makes it so much more sophisticated. Also the completely sheer upper panel of the bra is amazing, something not many brands have been brave enough to do.

The shape of the bra is something between the new Curvy Kate balconettes and perhaps a slight bit of Freya G+ balconettes. There is a tiny bit of point to the apex but there is still much more room at the top of the cup than eg with Freya. For a new brand, the shape is very good right from the start with enough uplift to avoid the downwards-7 effect, which can sometimes occur with three-part cup construction + the balconette style. The style is a true balconette but not a completely full-coverage one – this bra is very suitable for everyday wear and goes under most tops and dresses beautifully. I wear it regularly with my Pinup Girl Clothing peasant tops and the butterflies on the cup edge peek beautifully from the low neckline of the top.

The Fit: This is always the most interesting part of reviewing a new brand for you. When looking at the Rochella size chart, you can see that there are no 30 bands in sight, meaning I resulted in opting for my second most worn size, 32GG. I thought it might be a close shot as I am now leaning more towards 32 bands these days – however, British brands are infamous for being looser in the band than their Polish sisters. This was the case with Rochella as well; the 32 band was a size too big for me, but luckily it had four (!) sets of hooks and eyes to tighten it a bit. I am usually wearing it in the tightest or second tightest set of hooks, which is unfortunate as it shortens the lifespan of the bra a bit for me. The fit of the band is definitely on par with the likes of Curvy Kate and Freya, so if you are between band sizes, do size down.

The cups are a bit deeper than your usual British full-bust bra which is a huge upside for me personally – I find most British bras too shallow for my full bust and the Tattoo Butterfly fits me beautifully without any wrinkling at the bottom of the cups. Compared to its Polish counterparts the bra is not super forward-projecting but not as wide and splayed as eg Curvy Kate either. Also the wires are quite average in my opinion, the perfect medium between Polish and most British bras. The straps of the bra are quite long so take that into consideration if you are on the petite side! However, they are also fully-adjustable so there’s a lot of leeway to make them fit you the way you want.

Comfort: Overall the Rochella Tattoo Butterfly set is very comfortable – the materials feel high-quality (though I would be careful with the see-through mesh, it’s super thin and delicate!) and soft to touch. The outer layer is made of stretch satin and the lining out of polyester; I personally prefer cotton lining with my bras but I do feel this is another great option as I don’t feel it’s the kind of scratchy cheap polyester. The lining is a pretty lavender shade to show the support to gynaecology cancer survivors and sufferers – this makes sense as some of the profits go to a gynaecology cancer charity, which is awesome when we are talking about such a new brand.

The only thing that takes a bit away from the comfort factor of this set is that the straps are placed a bit too far apart for me and the cup edge comes up high enough in the armpit to chafe me while being more active. This has not prevented me from wearing this bra A LOT though, so I would say all in all the Rochella sets are not just pretty to look at, they are also quite comfy and very well-fitting. Also the panties get an A+ from me: I went for the size UK 10-12 and they fit me beautifully, I would even say they are one of my most flattering bottoms I own. The back of the briefs is made of super stretchy mesh so these are very butt-friendly and sexy at the same time.

The price point of Rochella is a bit higher than with most UK full-bust brands but that is kind of what the founder of the brand went for – better quality and a big size range (32-42 D-J) are key features with Rochella and I personally feel that £59 for a bra and £30 for the bottoms is a fair price for the pieces. Heck, the hardware on the front part of the straps is 18 ct gold! If you would like to give Rochella lingerie a try, I would suggest taking a look at their web shop, which you find here. They are also adding 30 bands this upcoming autumn so stay tuned for that if you are outside their size range at the moment! I am personally looking forward to trying something from the AW16 collection in 30H, which will be a sligthly better fit for me size-wise. xx

Let’s be fair – I absolutely love it when new full-bust brands burst into the scene and when I heard about Bosom Galore the first time, I was super excited to get interviewing the founder Katy about this new luxury brand designed for gals with small backs and big boobs. Also, I was intrigued to be looking at a new mid-market brand who had promised to use UK-only manufacturers and luxurious silks and laces to create a more luxurious feel to the garments. As we had seen the rise of All Undone just recently catering the same superb quality with a similar price tag, I was looking forward to see what Bosom Galore had in mind regarding their own aesthetics. Would it be something romantic or fashion-forward?

After seeing the first designs of Amelia and Classique styles and especially the first reviews from other bloggers, I was pleased to see them going for the young adult target market, meaning women in their late twenties and early thirties (or at least this is how I interpreted the brand image). However, the Bosom Galore styles are also very timeless and classic with a little bit of romantic and sultry vibes to spice them up, which I personally really like. Today, I am finally reviewing my first pieces from this lovely brand so if you are interested in the fit specifics of Amelia and Bosom Galore in general, hang in there! *Disclosure: This set was sent to me free of charge, however all opinions are my own as always!*

Design: The Amelia was definitely the set that got me to fall in love with Bosom Galore in the first place – it was very light rose pink with some delicate white lace over it which made it appeal to my more romantic side. I have always loved the combination of very fair pink and ginger hair, so I also thought it would suit my hair and skin colour really well. Also the plunge shape intrigued me – I am always looking for a good plunge that would go under my deepest and most open necklines.

The shape of Amelia is very rounded for a plunge bra – there is no clear point on sight even though the construction is pretty much the same three-part cup construction as eg with the Bravissimo “Satine”. However, Bosom Galore has managed to create a very rounded shape, not even using a moulded cup, which is actually pretty impressive. The gore of the bra is very low as with any regular plunge bra but it is so cleverly made, even a fuller bust can sport a good wide neckline without showing the bra peeking under the neckline. So very practical!Fit: Well now we get to the fun part! As Bosom Galore is a very new brand with only a couple of bra styles out at the moment, it is vital for us bloggers to let you all on the other side of the screens to know, what the sizing and fit with this particular brand are like. When discussing the sizes throughout the design and manufacturing process, we came to the conclusion that a 30H would be the best size for me, as it is my regular British size at the moment, especially with plunge bras that tend to cut my upper breast tissue anyway. At first I was a bit hesitant as I had seen the reviews from other bloggers about the Classique bra which seemed to be very tight in the band and small-ish in the cups. However, Katy reassured me that the Amelia would be much truer-to-size so I took her word for it and stick with my usual 30H.

I was so glad I did as the 30H fitted me very well! As I guessed, I did need an H as opposed to GG as plunges usually fit me snugly over my upper breast tissue. This was no exception and to be honest, I would have liked to try even a cup size up to compare how it would have fitted! As my left boob is a bit bigger than the right one, I did have some spillage on the other side and needed to adjust the bra a bit now and then. This however, is more due to the cup shape than the bra being a bad fit in general. Also, I did have some empty space in the bottom of the cup which tells me the cups are still a tad shallow for me. However, I can still wear the Amelia for several hours and feel secure enough in it to wear it on a regular basis! The BG online store states that the Amelia shape is best for women with wide-set breasts and I would agree – any excess breast tissue on top and at front will have a very high risk of spilling over!

The 30 band is supposed to be a truer-to-size fit with Amelia than Classique, which is great and seems to be correct based on my experience. My underbust measurement is about 30″ right now and the 30″ fitted me comfortably – a bit snugger than Curvy Kate or Freya, so just comfy and a bit sturdy enough for me. The wires are rather regular for a British brand so I would say a bit wide for me but still not going down to my back!

Comfort: Especially on the comfort front, Bosom Galore has done incredibly well in my opinion. The materials for example get full ten points! As someone suffering from a serious skin condition I could really appreciate the cotton lining inside the bra cups. To be honest, my skin has been itching like crazy recently so artificial materials are no good for me at the moment (last nigh I scratched myself so much I got bruises in addition to bleeding wounds – ouch!). Also the silk blend on top layer of the cups feels lovely to touch and the lace is one of the stretchiest and softest I have seen. So you truly get some great quality for your money! If you are worried about the wide wires, I would still like to assure you that they don’t come high up at all in the armpits – this means even if you are more on the narrow or petite side yourself, they won’t start rubbing your underarm area.

When talking about the panties I first need to mention the sizing – these suckers do run a bit small so I would advice everyone to size up with both Classique and Amelia bottoms. I am usually wearing a UK size 10 (US 6) when it comes to bottoms but with this particular brand I am wearing a size 12 briefs comfortably. To be frank, the 12 is very near to perfect and the fit is great for my muscular butt – the stretch lace accommodates even a curvier figure and leaves no lumps or bumps seen under your jeans/pencil skirts. I would actually be pretty keen on seeing a high-waisted version of these as well – it would be perfect for me under my tighter pencil dresses! The materials and the cut of the brief is very flattering and comfy so I would definitely vouch for getting the panties to match your bra – in one word, they feel amazing.

All in all I am very impressed with the fine details and the quality of my first Bosom Galore set and am looking forward to see how it translates to their other styles as well. For example, the strappy new style Louise is something I am definitely drooling over and would love assess the fit of it s it is one of the rare cage bras that come in my size!

If you are interested in getting your own Amelia set from Bosom Galore, the bra comes in sizes 26E-34H (£82) and the brief in sizes 6-16 (£38). Note the 26-bands as they are very welcomed addition to any full bust brand out there! At present, I think Bosom Galore is the only brand making them as a non-custom option so extra points for them because of that 😉 When it comes to the price, taking into account their ethical way of making the garments and the quality they are offering, Bosom Galore prices their lingerie very reasonably. The prices can be a shock to someone but if you are interested about the pricing of luxury lingerie, I would suggest you take a look at this The Lingerie Addict article – it explains why these sorts of garments cannot be priced too modestly!

What do you think of the Amelia or Bosom Galore in general? Also, would you be willing to pay more for a more local and ethical way of manufacturing lingerie plus a better quality materials? Let me know in the comments, I would love to know what my readers think of this matter! 🙂

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